Diocese of Spiš
diocese of the Catholic Church in Slovakia
The Diocese of Spiš (Slovak: Spišská diecéza, Latin: Dioecesis Scepusiensis, Hungarian: Szepesi egyházmegye) is a Latin Church diocese of the Catholic Church in northern Slovakia. It covers central and eastern parts of the Žilina Region and western part of the Prešov Region. Its seat is in Spišská Kapitula. As of 2024 the diocese covers an area of 7,802 km2 with 610,040 people of which 452,310 (74.1%) are of Catholic faith. There are 363 priests in the diocese.
The seat was vacant for three years after the death of bishop Štefan Sečka. On 8 September 2023, Pope Francis named František Trstenský as the new bishop. Trstenský was inaugurated on 21 October in Spišská Kapitula.
History
The diocese was established in the Kingdom of Hungary on 13 March 1776 as a suffragan of the Archdiocese of Esztergom. In 1804, its metropolitan was changed to the Archdiocese of Eger.
Begin with the source’s own compact description: “Diocese of Spiš” is diocese of the Catholic Church in Slovakia. The dossier treats that line as a proposition to test through Diocese, Spiš and diocese, not as a finished interpretation.
Why this record matters
The phrase “diocese of the Catholic Church in Slovakia” supplies a clear boundary for inquiry. It also exposes the unanswered questions: who defined that boundary, when it became stable and which sources sit outside it.
Place names and jurisdictional language are key evidence: both can reveal earlier catalogue descriptions and overlooked record series. The source revision retrieved here is dated Jun 15, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q168412. VIAF identifies the subject as 138149168. None of the 3 selected statements returned an explicit reference. The first chronological checks are 2024, 2023, 1776 and 1804.
Architectural summaries often privilege surviving fabric and can understate demolished phases, contested use or displaced communities. The lead is largely declarative, so disagreement and counter-evidence require a deliberate search beyond the opening account. Authority statements aid reconciliation but still require their own references, qualifiers and ranks to be checked.
How to read it
Treat names, boundaries and functions as historically changeable. Maps, plans, inventories and administrative records can clarify what the place meant at different dates.
- Historic place names
- Jurisdictional context
- Routes into maps and plans
Contemporary maps, plans, listed-building records, estate papers and the responsible local or national archive.
Three-step research path
- Establish the record: confirm the title “Diocese of Spiš”, its source revision and the description used here.
- Expand the search: follow Diocese of Spiš primary sources, Diocese of Spiš archive and Diocese research across catalogues and specialist indexes.
- Test the account: compare the strongest cited source with the responsible institution’s current record and note any disagreement.
Questions for further research
- Which source most directly establishes the central claim about “Diocese of Spiš”?
- What physical evidence or contemporary plan supports the description?
- Which authority defined the place, boundary or structure at the relevant date?
Search terms from this dossier
This entry incorporates text from “Diocese of Spiš” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.